Television devices such as LCD or Plasma televisions are becoming more sophisticated each year. Already, most have a processor and memory and a remote control as an input device. Soon, many television devices will have Internet connections and mass storage devices (e.g., disk drives). The Internet connection and storage will be used for many purposes, including the download and storage of content (e.g., movies). The television devices have or will have input ports or other types of connections, either wired or wireless for the connection of devices such as phones, cameras, storage devices, printers, music players, etc.
There are many reasons for connecting such devices to a television device such as, providing an Internet connection (e.g., for content download), providing enhanced caller-id and speaker-phone capabilities to a cell phone, playing content that is stored on the device, printing part of an electronic program guide (EPG) that is stored in the television devices, uploading content such as fonts, patterns, etc., to the television devices, providing videophone capabilities to the television devices, etc.
When a device is connected to existing television devices, there is no reaction. For example, if a cell phone connected to a USB cable is connected into a USB port of the television device, the television device takes no action and it is difficult to perform any useful task with the cell phone and television device combination.
What is needed is a predictable system that provides detection and classification of a device when it is attached to a television device and, responsive to the attachment, activation of corresponding drivers/applets/applications.